Rod Stewart apologizes to Prince Charles-It is usually members of the royal family who are the last to arrive at official engagements but Rod Stewart and his wife Penny Lancaster were forced to apologies after they kept the Prince of Wales waiting.

The couple breached royal protocol when they turned up ten minutes late to a meeting with the Prince, blaming London traffic for the long journey time from their apartment in Wapping in east London.

The couple are both ambassadors for the Prince’s Trust and were joining the Prince to open the new offices of the charity near the City of London.

Stewart apologised to the Prince when they met, and the pair shared a joke.

When the Prince asked how the singer's voice was, Stewart replied "improving with age" and his wife quipped "like a lot of other things".

Stewart said afterwards that he always tells his children to be on time: "We have a place over in Wapping and it took us three-quarters of an hour to get here."

He added: "I wish I had my own police escort, I would always be on time."

Lancaster praised the work of the Prince's Trust, which has helped young entrepreneurs through its business enterprise programme.She said: "We both became ambassadors about 10 years ago. We are able to inspire and encourage our children, who have a strong support system and financial support. But what about the children that don't have that support system? The Prince's Trust is a real helping hand - it's fantastic."

The offices of the Prince’s Trust moved from their former site near London’s West End to the financial district.

As he opened the new premises, the Prince said: "I can never get over how everything has grown from such a small desk - one man and a dog - and I was the dog.

"It is extraordinary for me just to see the expansion - in staff numbers, the huge numbers of people in different teams."

The Prince had already opened Tomorrow's Store when Stewart and Ms Lancaster arrived. The shop stocks jewellery, clothing, home ware and stationery made by entrepreneurs helped by his charity.

During his visit to the new offices, the Prince received two presents for his new grandson, Prince George of Cambridge.

Kimberly Smith, who runs a children's clothes shop in Port Talbot, South Wales, had some of her garments on sale in the new store and presented Charles with a baby bib decorated with the flags of the UK's four nations.

The Prince also accepted a blue romper suit decorated with elephants from Cecilia Crossley, chief executive of the company From Babies With Love, which donates its profits to good causes.

Ms Crossley's business has received marketing help from Arc, a programme run by the charity Business in the Community (BITC), which has the Prince as its president.

Arc is BITC's flagship enterprise programme which began in 2011 and aims to connect social entrepreneurs in the Olympic host boroughs with companies like BP, Deloitte and Visa Europe, where they can get expert support. The programme focuses on creating jobs and opportunities for entrepreneurs.